Here are nine quick and easy ways to update your kitchen for under $250:
• New knobs and pulls: Designer hardware trends are constantly changing. New hardware keeps your kitchen looking and feeling like new. Try one for a test. Make sure the distance between the holes is the same. Also ensure that the new hardware covers any damage caused by the old ones.
• New cabinet door hinges: Cabinet doors that won’t stay shut, hang crooked or have dingy-looking hinges are unattractive. New hinges are available in many different finishes to make your cabinetry look and feel like new again. Make sure the offset and the hole pattern is the same.
• New drawer slides: Opening the drawers without waking up the children or hurting yourself would be nice, wouldn’t it? Many different styles of slides are available to fit your budget and your current cabinet configuration.
• Replace trim on cabinet bases: The shoe molding and toe-kick cover around the bottom of your cabinets takes a lot of abuse. Replacing dinged-up trim makes a big difference in the kitchen’s appearance.
• New crown molding on top of cabinets: Crown molding draws the eye up and makes a kitchen look bigger. Crown that matches the decorative style of the room is an essential finishing touch that people will really notice.
• Add under-cabinet lighting: Whether you need task lighting or just better ambiance, halogen or xenon under-cabinet lights are outstanding alternatives to fluorescents.
• Roll-out trays for pots an pans: Tired of getting on your hands and knees to find the pan you’re looking for? Add roll-out access to put the right tool at your fingertips, even if you are standing up.
• Roll-out waste basket: Store trash where it belongs — out of sight. Easy roll-out access makes removing garbage from the kitchen a breeze.
• Custom drawer dividers and accessories: Organize spices, silverware, cooking utensils, knives or just about anything else in your drawers.
House Helper answers are provided by area industry professionals and are the opinions of our experts. Triad Homes does not make any representations as to opinions and facts.
If you have a question that can be answered by a Realtor, remodeler, builder or mortgage loan officer, please contact Heather L. Modlin by e-mail at hmodlin@news-record.com or by fax at 373-5956.
About our contributorJohn Groff owns the Greensboro franchise of Kitchen Tune-Up, a remodeling company. He can be reached at 282-9373.